I Won't Dance for You: A Collection of Shahrzad's Poetry

Kamran Talattof

This volume contains the translation of the poetic works of Shahrzad, and Iranian dancer, actor, and writer, originally published in three different books before the 1979 Iranian Revolution. In the 1960s and 70s, Shahrzad was known as a popular artist; she danced in clubs, acted in more than sixteen movies; and directed the movie Maryam and Mani (1977). She stopped dancing and acting in the late 1970s to write and as a result, published two volumes of poetry, a book of prose and poetry, a screenplay, and several commentaries for film journals. This translation includes almost all of the poems and prose of Shahrzad's three published books; Salam, Aqa (Hello, Sir, 1972); Ba Teshnegi Pir Mishavim (Thirsty, We Age, 1978); and Tuba (1977).

The poet's talent and the poems' power are reflected in the unusual metaphorical constructs and unique and sometimes unlikely images she portrays. Her verse generally features elusive and unconventional images and symbols as well as mystifying and subversive concepts. In most Persian verses of the political poetry of the decades before the 1979 Revolution, water, rain, and dew have a weighty presence, indicating hope and the coming of better times. Such hopes may be those of what some conceptualize as god's blessings (featured mostly in the classical period) or may be related to the desire to improve social and political situations (a subject more common in contemporary ideologically inspired literature). In Shahrzad's poetry, however, natural elements such as rain come close to their natural essence, that which gives life or revives. She assigns no particular political import; she simply asks for "one drop of dew" to enliven—to revive herself and the world. Her metaphors are the results of the juxtaposition of such elements, the constructed images. Such departure from convention and the tendency to depict the simple and the natural occur in all of her poems. Moreover, with a "small word," she shakes the whole world, and with "small acts of kindness," she performs the impossible act of washing "the wind, the rain, and the name." These images contain sobering expressions as well. "Washing a name" happens when a person behaves properly to eradicate the memories of previous wrongdoings. The meaning becomes clearer if we read the lines in the context of the accusations that were leveled against her, causing her to abandon her cinematic career. Moreover, her poems become the only place she talks about haunting memories, the assaults on her body, those that shaped the course of her tragic yet successful life.

Kamran Talattof

Kamran Talattof (University of Michigan, 1996) is a professor of Near Eastern Studies (Persian literature and Iranian culture). He teaches courses on Middle Eastern Women's Literature, Gender Issues, Ideological Movements, Cinema, and Literature. Much of his research and his publications focus on issues of gender, sexuality, ideology, culture, and language pedagogy. In his projects, he examines how cultural artifacts are created both within and in response to dominant social conditions, political ideologies, and the dominant discourses of sexuality. He traces the connections between literature, culture, ideology, and history. Talattof is the author, co-author, or co-editor of numerous books and articles including the "Modernity, Sexuality, and Ideology in Iran: The Life and Legacy of a Popular Female Artist," which was among Choice's Annual Outstanding Academic Titles, 2011, and also received The L. Yarshater Book Award, 2012. His "Politics of Writing in Iran: A History of Modern Persian Literature" (a comparative historiography) has been translated into Persian. He has also edited, co-authored, and co-translated more than a dozen other books and tens of articles on issues related to ideology, gender, literary criticism, and religion.

CONTENTS

Introduction

PART I: HELLO, SIR

Remember and ReturnThe Fifth SeasonWith Him, Night LingersI wish I could beat youYou Are The Guest of My EyesOh, Your Black Eyes in my Blue MarbleThe Cup of Sleep Will Finally BreakI Stay, I goThenThe Other Side of the Water WellSpeakI Have a SongHello, SirFriendMy Little RoomStar TreesWhen My Father Wore Glasses, We Thought HeBecame LiterateMistakes in DictationDarkness, Who Are You?

TubaWe Can Walk the City EverydayKnowing the FireTuba Grows and the Bucket Feels LightThe VillagerWater, Father, BurdenDrunkWinterFreedomRootsFatiAlive Under the IceHow Slowly One Grows Up / How Fast One Grows OldThe Grape GardenArash (The Hero) is Gone, Where is His Bow?One AirA Long NightWhich Mister?WashingZahraThe GoatI Don’t Go to Movies AnymoreHomework without Sugar CubesCertificateAliabad, the VillageOpenIn Ghost LandI Sleep in My AwakenessAzam, the Other GirlThis is the CaféOne Egg per DayTuba Grows Even Bigger